Steam-engine lubricator



I (No Model.)

W. H.v CRAIG.

STEAM ENGINE LUBRIGATOB.

UNITED -STATES PATENT Clarion..

W'ARRE HLLARD CRAIG, OF LA\VRENCE,-lllASSACHUSETTS.

STEAM-ENGINE LUBRICATOR.

SPICFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 314,214, dated March 17, 1885.

d Applcuiion filed December 19, 1884. (No model.)

tube within the oil-reservoir and extending from top to bottoni thereof. Fig. 3 is a transverse section of the glass sight'feed tube and its light-reflector, to be described.

To this lubricator there is within the oilreservoir thereof and extending from the top to its bottoni, and communicating by pipes with the condenser and the pipe leading the steam from the boiler to the engine, a duplexbored pipe which is integral or cast in one piece withthe reservoir. Rather than to have two separate pipes, it is preferable for several reasons to have the single pipe with two bores extending through it, parallel, or about so, to each other, one having a pipe leading upward from it into or nearly to the top of the steameondenser, and the other having apipe extending down from it into the steam-pipe. Furthermore, there is to this lubricator a sightfeed glass tube arranged wholly outside of the oil-reservoir and communicating therewith, and provided with a light-reiiector, such reflector being placed within the glass tube nearer to one than to the opposite part of its bore, and kept against the bore by a spring and from dropping downward by a mouthpiece or hopper resting on the top of the glass tube and 4extending above it, and disposed directly underneath the discharging end of a pipe communicating with the condenser at its lower part, all being substantially as hereinafter explained. l

In Fig. l of the drawings, A denotes the oil-reservoir, and B the steam-condenser, extending above such reservoir, the two being integral or cast in one piece.

Within theV reservoir is the duplex-bored 4 pipe C, having the two separate bores a and b ieXtending through it, such pipe being also integral with the oil-reservoir or cast in one `piece therewith, in order that there may be at the ends of the pipe no joints to leak or get -out of order.

From the upper part of the bore b a pipe, D, extends up within the condenser nearly to the top thereof, while from the lower part of the bore c a pipe, E, projects and extends into the pipe F for transmission of steam from the boiler to the engine. bore a opens into the oil-reservoir, the opening being provided with a screw valve or plug, G.

The oil-reservoir is mounted on a tube, H, leading into the steam-pipe, there being in the lower part of the duplex pipe C a passage, c, that opens out of the oil-reservoir and into the bore d of' the'screw e, by which and a nut, f, the tube H is coupled with the reservoir A.

To the opening of the passage c intothe oilreservoir there is a valve or screw-plug, l',

in the reservoir, to flow or be discharged out of it into the steam-pipe. The screwplug G is for regulating the discharge of oil from the reservoir A into the bore a of the duplex-borefl pipe C.

Another passage, g, formed within the duout of the condenser B. This passage, at its upper end, is provided with a stop valve or plug, K, whose shank is screwed through the top of the condenser. l

Outside ofthe oil-reservoir is the glass sighttube L, which is secured within and opens into branch conduits M and N, one of which leads out of the oil-reservoir at its upper and the other out of it at its lower part, as represented. There is in the upper part of the conduit M a mouth, h, provided with a screwplug, t', such mouth being to enable the reservoir to be supplied with oil. There is also to the conduit N, at its lower part, a discharging or draining opening, 7s, provided withL a screw-plug, Z, the said plug having openings m leading laterally into a bore, a, in its shank and opening out of the lower end thereof. l Below the seat of the Valve or plug Z there is a chamber, o, outof which the openings m lead, all being as represented, to enable the conduit At its upper end thel which, when opened, is to allow water, when plextube C, extends downward from and opens y ICO valves G and K are next to be opened or Vcondenser through the tube R, and will drop N or the oil-reservoir to be drained, when del sirablc', through the shank of the screw-plug Z rather than into the steam-pipe F.

Vithin and extending across the glass pipe L is the light-reiiector O, which, at its upper part, is furnished with a mouthepiece or hopper, p, that rests directly on the top of the glass tube. A spring, g, fixed to the reflector at its back and extending down therefrom, as represented, within and against the bore of the tube, operates to press forward the reflector and cause it at its opposite vertical edges to bear against the said bore, in which case the reflector becomes arranged nearer to one than to the opposite side of the bore, and at a distance from the front side that will readily allow the drops of water as they pass down in front of the reflector to be seen by a person when looking through the glass in advance of such front. The reflector can be turned around horizontally within the glass tube or adjusted therein so as to enable its lightlreflecting surface to be readily seen from the front or from either side of the tube, as occasion may require. v

From the lower part of the passage g, a pipe, R, bent as represented, leads into the conduit M, and opens directly over the mouthpiece or hopper p.

The reflector is to have on its front a suitable surface for reiiecting light into and through the drops of water as they may pass down in front of it and between it and the glass tube, and through the oil within such tube. The deiiector with its hopper causes the drops of water discharged from the tube R to iiow down along or in close proximity with the bore of the sight-feed tube L.

To prepare the lubricator for use, the reservoir A, the branch conduits M and N, and the glass tube L are to bc charged or filled with oil or the desirable liquid lubricant, after which steam from the pipeFis to iiowthrough the bore b and pipe D into the condenser B, and to condense therein. The screw plugs or moved back sufficiently from theirseats. The water of condensation will next fiow from the into the hopper p, and thence through the sight-feed tube L into the branch conduit N, and passing 'into the oil-reservoir below its charge of oil will force such charge upward into the bore c, from whence the oil will be discharged into the steam-pipe F, and by the steam passing through such be conveyed to the valve-chest or parts ot' the engine to be lubricated. p

The object of having the pipe E extended down into the bore of the steam-pipe F and curved or bent forward therein,as represented, is to discharge the oil so far from the pipe H that no such oil may be intercepted by the steam iiowing up the pipeH and the bore Z1,and forced into the condenser. Instead, however,

of having the pipe E to lead out of the bore a, such pipe may open into the bore I), in which-l case the pipe at its lower part or end should be turned in a reverse direction, as shown at E by dotted lines. In this case part of the advancing steam will flow into and up the pipe and the bore I) (without intercepting any of the oil discharged from the bore a) into the pipe H, and thence into the pipe F. It is not absolutely essential that the pipe E at its lower part be bent either way, as described; but, if so bent, it will better operate to prevent oil from being intercepted by the steam and carried thereby up into the condenser.

c I am aware that it is not new to have a steamengine lubricator provided with a sightpane of glass and a reflecting-surface directly in rear thereof. Therefore I do not claim such, as in my present lubricator I employ in connection with the oil-reservoira glass tube communicating at its two extremities with the said reservoir, and I also have within such tube a light-reflector. Vv'ith such tube and reiiector the latter not only can be adj usted in the former so as to be seen from several directions, but light is thrown into the tube all around it, so that the drops of water passing through it are observed to very much better advantage than through a pane simply; nor do I claim passages extending transversely out of an oil-re servoir from a steam-pipe and provided within the latter with pipes curved in opposite directions, as'represented in the United States Patent No. 288,665, for in my lubricator the passages a and b, that communicate with the condenser and the stea1n-pipe, are within a column integral with the oil-reservoir and eX- tending from top to bottom thereof.

The passage c, openingout of the lower part of the oil-reservoir and communicating with the bore of the steam-pipe and provided with the screw-plug I, enables oil as well as water' to be drained from the reservoir into the steampipe when occasion may require. In case of accidental breakage of the glass sight-tube, especially when the lubricator is applied to a IOO locomotive-engine, the passage of the steam into and from the condenser should be arrested by closing the plugs G and K, after which, by opening the plug I, oil may be discharged from the reservoir into the steam-pipe.

Having thus described my improved steamengine lubricator, what I claim therein is as follows:

l. The combination, with the oil-reservoir, of a glass tube arranged alongside and outside thereof and communicating at its ends with the interior of the reservoir at the upper and lower portions thereof, and provided with a lightreiiector arranged lengthwise and revoluble and movable around within it, (thesaid glass tube,) as set forth.

2. rIhe combination, with the oil-reservoir, of the sight-feed'glass tube provided with the light-reiiector arranged within its bore, and having a spring to keep it (the said reiectoi in close contact therewith andadmit of it be ing turned around therein, as set forth- 3. The combination, with the oil-reservoir,

condenser and steam-pipe, with the sight-feed of the sight-feed glass tube-provided with the l light-refiector and its hopper arranged in and with the bore of such tube, substantially as represented.

4c. The combination of the steam-condenser and the oil-reservoir with the duplex-bored tube extending within Such reservoir from its bottom to its top, and having one bore, a, in its upper part to open into the oil-reservoir, with a pipe leading from one of the bores of the said tube up within the condenser, and also with another pipe leading downward from the other bore into the pipe, for conveyance of steam from the boiler to the steam-engine.

5. rIhe combination, with the oil-reservoir, of the duplex-bored pipe extending within it from top to bottom of it and integral or cast in one piece with such reservoir, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination of the steam-condenser, the oil-reservoir, and the duplex-bored tube of the latter arranged and integral or cast in one piece, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination of the steam-condenser, the oil-reservoir, the duplex-bored tube in the latter, extending from top to bottom thereof, and the tubes leading from such duplex-bored tube int-o the condenser and steam-pipe, with a screw-plug to the bore opening into the oilreservoir at'its upper part, and with a draining-passage leading out of the oil-reservoir at its bottom or lower part and provided with a screw-plug, all being substantially as set forth.

8. The combination of the steam-condenser, oil-reservoir, duplex-bored tube of the latter, and the tubes leading from such tube into the glass tube arranged outside of the oil-reservoir and communicating therewith, and' provided with the light-reflector arranged within it, allbeing substantially as represented.

9. The combinationl of the steam-condenser, the oil-reservoi r, the duplex-bored tube of the latter,and its tubes leadinginto the condenser and steam-pipe with the sight-feed glass tube arranged outside of and communicating with the oil-reservoir, and provided with a lightreiiector arranged longitudinally within and transversely across it (the said glass tube) and with a pipe communicating with the condenser and opening into that part of the bore of the glass tube which is directly in front of the reectorf, all being substantially as described, and the educt of the condenser and that of the duplex-bored tube into the oilreservoir being provided with screw valves or plugs, as explained.

10. The combination of the steam-condenser and the oil-reservoir with the duplex-bored tube extending within the latter from top to bottom thereof, and provided with a pipe leading from one of the bores upward within the condenser and with another pipeleading down` ward from the other bore into the steam-pipe and curved forward therein, as represented, the latter bore being .open at its upper part into the oil-reservoir.

1l. The combination of the steamcondenser and the oil-reservoir with the duplex-bored tube extending within the latter from top to bottom thereof,and provided with apipeleading from one of the bores up within the condenser, and having the other bore at its upper part to open into the oil-reservoir, with a pipe leading down from the first-named bore into the steam-pipe and bent or turned or bent backward therein, all being substantially as set forth.

VARREN HILLIARD CRAIG.

Titnessesz R. H. EDDY, E. B. PRATT. 

